Fate of city, police agreement on council docket
The San Marcos City Council will meet on Tuesday to consider the next steps for the Meet and Confer agreement between the San Marcos Police Officers’ Association and the city.
The current three-year agreement was originally approved in Sept. of last year but has been challenged by petition.
Meet and Confer is a legal statute that allows cities to negotiate agreements for firefighters and police officers with the stated purpose “to secure efficient fire and police departments composed of capable personnel who are free from political influence and who have permanent employment tenure as public servants,” according to the city’s agenda packet. The agreement allows the city and, in this case, the police officers’ association to negotiate wages and working conditions.
Mano Amiga, an organization that advocates for criminal justice reform in Hays County, began making the push to repeal the approved meet and confer contract after the city and SMPOA didn’t consider the Hartman Reforms, which call for an end to the 180-day rule — the statute of limitations for investigating wrongdoing by officers.
Mano Amiga, along with Pamela Watts — whose life-partner Jennifer Miller was killed in a vehicle collision caused by former SMPD Sgt. Ryan Hartman, while he was off-duty in Lockhart on June 10, 2020 — called for the “Hartman Reforms” on June 10, 2022.
The reforms also called for an end of delaying interviews for misconduct, officers are allowed more than 48 hours before giving an official statement; public transparency for personnel files; an end to third-party arbitration; and end vacation forfeiture as a substitute to suspension.
The city has verified the petition calling for the repeal of Meet and Confer. The council must now decide if it will repeal the agreement effective June 7 allowing for 120 days to negotiate or send the decision to voters.
The council’s agenda packet states that rescinding the agreement would negate negotiations made since 2009 and “revert to civil service and state law.” It also states that this “creates significant operational impacts including hiring, staffing, promotion and discipline.”
The council will also discuss the Albian Leyva vs. Ryan Hartman, Jacinto Melendrez, and City of San Marcos lawsuit during executive session.
Other items on the agenda for the city council meeting are the annual appointments to boards and commissions. There will be consideration of the use of the Community Development Block Grant from both the coronavirus and from disaster recovery. Those grants would help fund the Blanco River Recovery Team, as well as relocating certain project funding to the Midtown Aquaria Springs project.
The city will consider several potential zoning changes including the potential for nearly 620 acres near the intersection of Highway 80 and FM 110 to be annexed into the city limits at the property owner’s request. Sean Patricks is is also appealing the Planning and Zoning Commission’s decision to limit the restaurant and bar’s ability to have outdoor music when its mixed-beverage alcohol permit was approved.
The meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 7 at 6 p.m. at the City Council Chambers in San Marcos City Hall.
dsweat @sanmarcosrecord.com
